Control and switch assembly therefor



March 15, 1960 F. PETTIT CONTROL AND SWITCH ASSEMBLY THEREFOR Filed March 28, 1958 INVENTOR Fm/w P57" /7' CONTROL AND SWITCH ASSEMBLY THEREFOR Frank Pettit, Union, NJ.

Application March 28, 1958, Serial No. 724,648

6 Claims. (Cl. 338-215) This invention relates to motor controls and more specifically to a novel and improved control and rheostat therefor that is particularly useful for operating motor driven toys.

Many types of controls and control systems have been proposed for the control of toy motors having permanent magnet fields and known systems have been found to be. unsatisfactory for a number of reasons. Some controls, for instance, are highly complicated and therefore costly, while others do not afford the ease and precision of control required for proper operation of the devices. 7

' It is therefore one object of the invention to provide an improved control system for motor driven toys characterized by its ease of operation and precise control.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in a control system for motor driven toys, a control rheostat characterized by its simplicity, ruggedness, ease of manufacture and maintenance and relatively low cost.

Still another object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel and improved rheostat for controlling motors such as permanent field magnet field motors of the type used in toys.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will appear from the more detailed description set forth, it being understood that this more detailed description is given by way of explanation and illustration only, and not by way of limitation, since various changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates a toy vehicle such as a model airplane, rotatably supported by a central support structure and remotely operated by a control mechanism according to the invention;

Figure 2 is an elevational view of the reversible rheostat control according to the invention and taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 3;

' Figure 3 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of the control of Figure 1, taken along the line. 3-3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a cross sectional view of Figure 3 taken along the line 44 thereof.

Figure 1 of the drawings illustrates a control system in accordance with the invention as applied to a toy airplane. In the configuration of Figure l, a toy plane having a propeller is secured to one end of a hollow rotatable rod '11 and oneelectric motor 12 for driving the propeller is secured to the other end of the rod. The motor and propeller are connected by a flexible drive shaft within the hollow rod and a suitable gear and shaft arrangement within the plane. It will be apparent that other connecting arrangements can be made to carry out the same function.

The rod is carried by a rotatable housing 13 supported by a pylon structure 14 about which the plane is free to rotate in its operational movements. Another motor 13a within the housing, and shown schematically in Figvfl d SW65 P wfi Q ure 2, effects relation of the rod about its longitudinal axis in either direction, thus changing the pitch of the aircraft.

Both the pitch and propeller motors are accurately and precisely controlled by a lever-operated control rheostat system 15 having control levers 16 and 17 for controlling the operational movements of the said motors. In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 3 the control system comprises in general an enclosure 18 having mounted therein a lever-controlled reversible control rheostat 19 for controlling the operational movements of the pitch motor, and a lever-operated control rheostat 20 for controlling the operational movements of the propeller motor. The reversible control rheostat 19 includes a contact arm 21 which forms part of the control lever and which is pivotally secured to a bracket member 22. The contact arm 21 is made to engage a pair of resistive coil elements 23 and 24 carried by the bracket member 22 and a pair of conductive segments 25 and 26 also carried by the bracket member 22. The pivotal movement of the contact arm in a forward direction permits the arm to conductively engage a coil and a segment of each of their respective pairs so that the pitch motor will rotate in a forward direction. A reverse movement of the arm effects the engagement thereof with the other coil and segment to reverse the direction of the pitch motor. Propeller motor control rheostat 20 is similarly provided with a lever-operated contact arm 27 pivotally secured to bracket member 28 and disposed to engage a resistive coil element 29 carried by the bracket member. The combined operation of the motor control rheostats provides smooth and etficient control of the toy plane.

Figures 2 and 3 show in detail the control rheostat for the pitch motor 13 with the enclosure. The enclosure includes a pair of spaced-apart, upwardly extending arcuate flange members 30 and 31 defining a slot 32 for receiving one end 33 of the pivotally secured contact arm of the rheostat, the slot providing a path for the arcuate movement of the said arm in its forward and reverse direction. The bracket member 22 is generally L-shaped with a flanged member 34 at the upper extremity thereof, the flanged member having a pair of spaced holes 35 and 36 for receiving rivets 37 and 38 to secure the bracket to the enclosure. The bracket has a hole 38 a at the bottom thereof for receiving pivot pin 39a. A first insulated, elongated bar member 39 is secured by rivets 40 and 41 to the upwardly extending sides 42 and 43 of the bracket member and carries the said resistive coil elements in spaced relation. A second insulated bar member 44 is similarly secured by rivets 45 are generallyvertically aligned and an output terminalof each coil is conductively connected to a segment diagonally opposed to the coil.

The pivotally operated contact arm 21 is secured to{ the bracket member 22 by pivot pin 39a, the pin having shoulders intermediate its ends against which the said contact arm and bracket bear to maintain the desired spacings. The pin is fixedly held to the bracket by the combination of a recessed washer 48a axially carried by the pin and a compressive washer 49a which bears against the washer and bracket. The contact arm 21 is provided with an insulated handle 50a at its upper extremity, and has a pair of spaced holes 49 and 50 for receiving contacts 51 and 52, respectively. A metal bushing 53 is secured to the contact arm in axial alignment with the hole 49 for the reception of contact 51. An insulated grommet-type washer 54 is also secured to the said contact arm in axial alignment with hole 50 for the reception'of contact 52. A resilient type coil spring segments in response to the directional movements of the said contact arm.

A coil spring 58 having a pair of L-shaped free ends 59 and 60 surrounds the pivot pin 39a and is supported thereby. The coil is prevented from rotating about the pin by an L-shaped member 61 secured to the bracket and having its flanged end placed between the free ends of the coil. The free ends of the coil bridge the contact arm to restore the said arm to a neutral or central position when the arm is displaced.

Current from a power source 60 to an electric motor such as the pitch motor in the instant case, may be altered both in magnitude and direction by manual manipulation of the lever arm 16 as it negotiates and engages the resistive coil elements and the conductive segments. When the lever arm is in the forward direction, as illu trated a A. in. F gu e 2. the urrent path to the pit h motor from the power source is defined by the following con c el men conductor 61, gment 25; con: H tor .62, n c 5.1, ct arm. 2.1., o tput lug 63, the motor 13a, lug 6,4 (insulated from the contact arm), contact 52 and segment 25, the elements being connected in the order named. Positioning the lever arm in the, reverse direction, as illustrated at C, reverses the current path from the power source to the motor. The elements defining the reverse current path from the power source are as follows: conductor 61, segment 26, contact 52 to lug 64, the motor 13a, lug 63 up through contact arm 21, contact 51, coil 24 to segment 25 via connector 65 and back to the power source. Positioning the lever arm 16 midway between the spaced resistive elements, illustrated at B, interrupts the motor current path, since the contacts 51 and 52 do not conductively engage the resistive elements and the conductive segments.

Referring to Figures 3 and 4, the enclosure housing the toy plane motor control. rheostats is provided with an additional pair of spaced upwardly extending arcuate flange members 66 and 67, similar to flanges 30 and 31, which define a slot 68 for receiving one end 69. of the control contact arm 27. T hev flanged bracket member 28 is mounted within the housing and is of generally U-shaped configurations with the flanged portion having a pair of holes 71 and 72 for receiving rivets 73 and 74 which secures the brackets to the enclosure. The bottom portion of the bracket has a hole 75 for receiving. pivot pin 76. 'The pivot pin 76 is similar in design to pin 39a and pivotally secures contact arm 27 to the bracket 20 a fixed distance apart in the same manner as arm 21 was secured to bracket 22. This is done by the combination of a recessed washer 77 which is carried by the pin 76,,

and compressive washer 78 which bears againstthe bracket and washer 77. An elongated insulated bar member 79 having the resistive coil element 2? secured thereto, is carried by the, bracket member. The pivotally supported contact arm 27 has flanged hole 81 for receiving contact 82 which conductively engages resistive coil element 29 when the said arm is operably engaged.

A resilient coil spring 83 surrounds the contact between the contact arm and contact shoulder 84 and compressively urges the contact against the coil.

When the contact arm 27 is moved to the right, as shown in Figure 4, the contact 82 engages the resistance element 29 to complete the circuit from the power supply 60a to the motor 12, the power supply being either the supply as shown in Figure 2 or one similar to it. As the arm is moved farther to the right, the resistance in the decreased to increase the speed of the motor 12.

From the foregoing description of the invention, it is apparent that the novel and improved rheostat construction affords a rugged, dependable and easily operated control, particularly adapted for use with toys. The arrangement and coordination of the various elements greatly simplifies the fabrication and assembly of the several components and affords a highly compact unit, easily mounted in a control box such as box 15 of Figure 1. Another advantage of this improved rheostat resides in the versatility of the design, in that the rheostat 26, for instance, may utilize parts subsequentially identical to the parts used for the. rheostat 19. For instance, identical control arms may be employed in each rheostat, though the opening 54) in the control arm 21 would not be used when the arm is employed in a rheostat such as the rheostat 29.

While only certain embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is apparent that other. modifications, alterations and changes may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit thereof.

What is claimed is; t

1, In a control s stem for controlling the operation of toy motors a rheostat comprisin a support structure, a movable contact arm havi a neutral position. and. Fiv otelly supportedrby the structure, a pair of resisti e elements attached to the, structure, the contact arm being disposed to operabiy engage the resistive elements in response to, its directional movements, means including one of the said resistive elements for controlling the opera: tion of the motor in a first direction responsive to the directional movement of the arm in a first direction, means including the other of the said resistive elements for controlling the operation of the motor in a second direction responsive to the directional movement of the arm in a second direction, and spring means coupled to the arm for holding it in its neutral position and for restoring it to such position when the arm is released. after being moved out of the neutral position.

', 2. In a control system for remotely controlling the operational movements of a toy airplane driven by an electric motor, a rheostat for controlling the motor current comprising, a housing having an elongated slot, bracket member secured to the housing, a first elongated insulated member carrying a pair of separately wound... coils secured to the. bracket, a, second elongated insulated member carrying a pair of conductive segments. having negligible resistance. secured to the bracket, a contact arm pivotally secured to the bracket and extending through said elongated slot, a pair of contacts carried by the contact arm, the said contacts being in compressive engagement with a coil and segmentwhen the. contact arm is moved from a central position, and spring means for holding said contact arm in said central position and for restoring it to the central position after displacement and release.

3. In a control system for remotely controlling the op erational movements of a toy airplane driven by an elec tric motor, a lever-operated reversible control rheostat having a neutral position and comprising a bracket support member, a pair of spaced coplanar insulated bar members secured to one side of said bracket with the plane of said members being parallel to the plane of movement of the lever, oneof the saidbar members carry: ing a pair of spaced variable resistor elements thereon, the other of the said bar members carrying a pair of spaced conductive elements, a contact lever arm pivotally supported by the bracket member carrying a pair of spaced insulated contacts, means including the said contacts for conductively engaging a resistor element and conductive element in response to the movement of the said lever arm in a first direction to control the rotational movement of the motor in a. first direction, and for. conductive y engaging the. other at the said resistive elements and conductive elements in response to the movement of the said lever arm in a second direction to control the rotational movement of the motor in a second direction, and spring means for automatically restoring the said lever arm to a neutral position when released after displacement thereof.

4. In a control system for controlling the speed and direction of motor driven toy vehicles, a reversible rheostat for controlling the current to said motor comprising an enclosure having an elongated slot, a mounting bracket secured within the enclosure, a first insulated bar member having a pair of spaced, separately wound coils mounted thereon and secured to the said bracket, a second insulated bar member secured to the bracket in coplanar relationship to the first member including a pair of spaced conductive segment members mounted thereon, a contact arm having a pair of contacts extending from one side thereof and pivotally secured to the bracket member at one of its extremities, the other extremity extending through and communicating with the elongated slot, means for holding one of the said contacts in compressive engagement with the first member and the other of the said contacts in compressive engagement with the second member, said contacts being movable into contact with coils and segments upon displacement from a neutral position, connective means between one of the said coils and segments to provide a current path in a forward direction to the motor when the contact arm is in a forward position and connective means between the other of the said coils and segments to provide a current path in the reverse direction to the motor when the contact arm is in a reverse position, and spring means for restoring the contact arm to a neutral position after displacement thereof and release.

5. Means for controlling the speed and direction of motor driven toy vehicles, a reversible rheostat for controlling the current to the said motor comprising a support structure, a movable lever arm pivotally supported for arcuate movement along a side of the structure, a pair of contacts insulated from each other carried by the lever arm, a first insulated bar member secured to the structure and having a pair of separately wound resistor coils thereon, a second insulated bar member secured to the structure in coplanar relationship to the first bar and having a pair of spaced conductive segments thereon, one of the said contacts operatively engaging the said coil and the other contact engaging the said segment in response to the movement of the lever arm from a neutral position, connective means including one of the segments and coils to provide a current path to the motor in a forward direction in response to movement of the lever arm in a forward direction, connective means including the other segment and coil to provide a current path to the motor in a reverse direction in response to movement of the lever arm in a reverse direction and restoring means secured to the structure for restoring the lever arm to a neutral position, said restoring means including a tensionally wound coil spring secured to the lever pivot support and in resistive engagement with the contact arm to oppose its controlling movements.

6. A control for electric motor driven toy vehicles comprising a housing having an elongated slot in one Wall thereof, a bracket secured to and extending from said wall in parallel relationship to said slot, an arm pivoted to said bracket at a point spaced from the outer edge thereof and extending through said slot, a pair of elongated members of insulating material secured to said bracket in coplanar, spaced relationship, a pair of resistance coils carried by one of said elongated members with said coil spaced substantially uniformly on each side of a central neutral position, a first contactor carried by and extending from one side of said arm, said contactor being movable into slidable electric contact path with said coils by arcuate movement of said arm from the neutral position, a pair of spaced contact segments carried by the other elongated member with an exposed surface of each segment in substantially the plane of said contact path, a second contactor carried by said arm and extending from said one side thereof, said contactor being movable into engagement with said segments upon displacement of the arm from said neutral position and spring means coupled with said arm for resisting movement of the arm from the neutral position and restoring it to the neutral position when released.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 804,595 Garhart Nov. 14, 1905 1,816,813 Angelides Aug. 4, 1931 2,479,896 Batcheller Aug. 23, 1949 2,617,911 Carey et al. Nov. 11, 1952 2,637,796 Pike May 5, 1953 

